Lo Que No Sabrías (What You Wouldn’t Know)
A Portrait Assemblage Series
I am inspired by ways in which familiar and common materials can be recontextualized to create something superb. In attaching personal meaning to particular objects, I am interested in how imbuing layered context through aspects of storytelling can reconstruct the ordinary into something extraordinary.
Such is the case in my sculptural assemblage series Lo Que No Sabrías (What You Wouldn’t Know), where I center family portraits on platters and plates. I surrounded the images with thousands of glass beads and found and made miniatures. The colorful collection of miniature representations of everyday materials playfully and abstractly surrounds the portraits. The ways in which these items were arranged, generate devices that serve as visual representations of familial narratives, an act of adoration, and affection for my ancestors many of them living on only in memory. For instance, in Familia, at the base of my family’s image is a small platter of fruit, a revolver, and adorned skulls. To the right of the platter is an unlit candelabra, surrounded by plants, next to an owl about to take flight from a small picture frame. These assemblages serve as a device of care, respect, and appreciation for my ancestors.
Images by Libby Paloma (artist)
